methods as they had during Ottoman rule. They killed, imprisoned in order to achieve their aims to uproot the locals and replace them with settlers. In this way they forced the people of Eptakomi to leave behind their village and become refugees, some in their homeland and the rest in other countries such as the UK, America & Australia.

Most who were forced out in 1976 temporarily relocated to the small Turkish villages of St Thomas & Plataniskia, which had previously been Greek villages (history repeats itself) where for years since the war they live longing to return to their village.

From the 140-150 people who lived there in 1976 the number is now extremely low. Last time I visited Ayios Thomas it was extremely quiet. Seldom do you come across young men or women on the street and it resembles a monastery or an old peoples home. There are very few villagers remaining and they are advanced in years. Fortunately many of the younger villagers who now live in towns prefer the climate of Ayios Thomas and have acquired weekend and holiday homes there which also gives hope to the remaining old people living there as well as the hope that they will still even now return to Eptakomi and see out the rest of their lives in the place of their birth. They eagerly await the day when the church bells of St Luke's and St George will ring along with those of the other churches on the island and will mark the freedom of Cyprus.

We hope that God will bring freedom to Cyprus and that on St Luke's day we will be celebrating in a free Eptakomi